Mechanic's comprehensive tech review of Jeep Wrangler 4XE

[alphawolff]

Took you awhile to join the forum? Why would you buy one if you work on them knowing what a pos it is?

I bought one when they first came out to replace my 2012 sport. FCA as a whole was a completely different animal before COVID, and this was the first post covid vehicle they released. Nobody knew about the issues they were going to have back then. I owned it barely 5 months, put about 5000 miles on it, and that includes driving it once cross country. I would've kept it longer if I didn't get assigned to do a PDI on the first 392 that got delivered to our shop.

That V8 is just delicious to the ears.

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[Tredsdert]

Hey treds, you watered down poison peddler, you just convinced me. Problem is, I've seen what your kind do to your vehicles, so no chance I'll buy some used monstrosity. As soon as my dealer has a new one in stock, I'll *totally* trade my 4xe in for one. Uh huh.

Honestly the amount of ecodiesels I've seen on the road both between the Rams, gladiators and Wranglers, the amount of people who have done a stage two tune, is one. I've met one person who's messed with their PCM and and did a stage 2 tune, and I've met two people who've done a stage 1 EGR delete. Most people don't do that. I think a lot of people are afraid of voiding warranties. ?‍

Most EcoDiesel owners are like all of the other engine option owners, they lift it put on big tires, couple stickers, and call it a day.

Wrangler owners aren't known for playing with technical things in the engine bay. I often feel like I'm alone in that field on this forum. That's why I spend a lot of time on the RAM forums as well, for whatever reason pickup truck guys like tuning their engines. ?

So point being, you'd be pretty safe getting an EcoDiesel Wrangler in whatever state you live in. Even more so if you live in a carb compliant state.

 

[PatriotX]

I've posted the entire B9A recall procedure in the B9A recall thread.



The diesels MPG is probably its single redeeming quality in stock form. If you manage to tune it and remove all the emissions junk they become pretty OK, but this is the case for just about every diesel these days. Highly illegal though.

So are you certified to work on the hybrids, or not?

 

[UtahDirt]

I personally owned a 2021 4XE. I remember bringing it in for its first oil change and the service advisor was flabbergasted when he saw it had three pages worth of recalls and RSUs to complete. I owned the vehicle for 6 months before trading it in on a 392. The vehicle never charged right and had piss poor gas mileage. I didn't own it long enough for the ECH to fail, the water outlet to start pissing coolant, or the battery exploding.

I'm also a dealer tech who works on the 4XEs on a daily basis.

Sure you are, if true I’d hate to have you get near my 4XE with that attitude

 

[Jeepney2]

I averaged ~14.2 driving cross country without towing anything. My 392 got 14.7 on the way back towing my trailer. It's poor by even wrangler standards.

It's all fun and smiles until you're averaging 80-85MPH on a 3k mile road trip

I keep seeing the poor gas mileage comments and don’t understand it.
i average 22-24 mpg on the highway and I’ve been averaging 22 around home In hybrid mode.
(home being “country roads -45 mph and a mile or 2 between stoplights)
21 4xe Sahara

 

[BXFXJeep]

Took you awhile to join the forum? Why would you buy one if you work on them knowing what a pos it is?

Because he keeps getting banned, and he keep respawning, previous accounts he didn't own a 4xe, this time around it appears he "owned" one, he's a troll.

 

[BXFXJeep]

Sure you are, if true I’d hate to have you get near my 4XE with that attitude

Exactly he would purposely damage the 4xe just to prove his cockeyed agenda

 

[Dabrakeman]

The poor gas mileage is largely a function of the aerodynamics on this vehicle. Above 55 or 60mph the mpg falls off a cliff. At 80mph I average about 16-17mpg. At 55 I get more like 25mpg. These of course are pure ICE numbers. All the engine trims are going to have piss poor mpg at high highway speeds but understandably the smaller engines will suffer a greater % drop. The 4xe more than makes up for it in overall average mpg excluding the high speed stuff while maintaining power on demand similar to the V8. For those drivers that do not have to frequently make the long hauls no other trim comes close to the 4xe for average mpg. So, like most things it works for some and not for others.

 

[dbp512]

Honestly the amount of ecodiesels I've seen on the road both between the Rams, gladiators and Wranglers, the amount of people who have done a stage two tune, is one. I've met one person who's messed with their PCM and and did a stage 2 tune, and I've met two people who've done a stage 1 EGR delete. Most people don't do that. I think a lot of people are afraid of voiding warranties. ?‍

Most EcoDiesel owners are like all of the other engine option owners, they lift it put on big tires, couple stickers, and call it a day.

Wrangler owners aren't known for playing with technical things in the engine bay. I often feel like I'm alone in that field on this forum. That's why I spend a lot of time on the RAM forums as well, for whatever reason pickup truck guys like tuning their engines. ?

So point being, you'd be pretty safe getting an EcoDiesel Wrangler in whatever state you live in. Even more so if you live in a carb compliant state.

If my dealer had any left it would have been a more difficult decision. Ultimately the 4xe is still better for my use since I do a lot more local driving for work than long distance highway cruises. That, and diesel costs more than gas

 

[Yogi1956]

I bought one when they first came out to replace my 2012 sport. FCA as a whole was a completely different animal before COVID, and this was the first post covid vehicle they released. Nobody knew about the issues they were going to have back then. I owned it barely 5 months, put about 5000 miles on it, and that includes driving it once cross country. I would've kept it longer if I didn't get assigned to do a PDI on the first 392 that got delivered to our shop.

That V8 is just delicious to the ears.

You should post a video showing you driving that delicious 392?

 

[alphawolff]

You should post a video showing you driving that delicious 392?

My 4XE next to said PDI. And my 392 after I got home that very night after trading it in:

I come here to help you guys with my experience and knowledge as someone in the field who quite literally works on them, especially 4XEs, on a daily basis. I also love jeeps. You guys can buy whatever Jeep you want, it's up to you at the end of the day. I'm not here to spout bullshit.

Sure you are, if true I’d hate to have you get near my 4XE with that attitude

I'm sorry brother but I'm the only one you have at my shop, the other guy left a few months ago and replacements are hard to come by these days. If you don't want me working on it you'll have to tow it out. Just because I don't recommend them doesn't mean they aren't capable vehicles. I don't recommend them because the shear amount I get in the shop under 20k miles is frankly ridiculous. Most people own their Jeep as their only vehicle, and stellantis doesn't really do well with rentals these days.

There's two wranglers I would suggest to the average buyer: 3.6L Non E-torque, and the 392. The 2.0L has been relatively fine reliability wise, but when they do break they're significantly harder to work on compared to the other two engines.

So are you certified to work on the hybrids, or not?

Yes. About 60% of my workload consists of 4XEs and hybrid Pacificas. Do not buy a hybrid Pacifica. I don't care how nice they drive, don't do it! There's a damn good reason KBB rated them the most unreliable vehicle of 2023.

 

[Tredsdert]

The poor gas mileage is largely a function of the aerodynamics on this vehicle. Above 55 or 60mph the mpg falls off a cliff. At 80mph I average about 16-17mpg. At 55 I get more like 25mpg. These of course are pure ICE numbers. All the engine trims are going to have piss poor mpg at high highway speeds but understandably the smaller engines will suffer a greater % drop. The 4xe more than makes up for it in overall average mpg excluding the high speed stuff while maintaining power on demand similar to the V8. For those drivers that do not have to frequently make the long hauls no other trim comes close to the 4xe for average mpg. So, like most things it works for some and not for others.

Damn that sucks, at 55 miles an hour on a full tank I got 34 MPGs with factory tires and aftermarket wheels and nothing done to my engine. Mind you it was mostly highway driving, with close to 550 mi on that one tank with my EcoDiesel.

I keep linking to it, it's all outlined in this thread here...

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/shoulda-bought-an-ecodiesel.111519/

 

[c20040215]

Damn, I probably average somewhere between 75 to 95 MPH most days of the week, and still average 24 MPGs...

SHOULDA BOUGHT AN ECODIESEL

35,000 mi of problem-free driving. And I haven't even done the HPFP recall yet, and have no intention of ever doing it!

I think all Wranglers have their lemons, just the 4XE has more lemons than any other.

If you really want the best engine option, get the EcoDiesel. A little more cost and upkeep, but it is the best option for power to MPG, Plus you can tow with it, and still get good mileage. Don't make me call up my EcoDiesel homies, y'all might get MPG schooled!

35,000 miles of problem free... I guess the reliability bar for Jeep is really that low, huh.

 

[Tredsdert]

35,000 miles of problem free... I guess the reliability bar for Jeep is really that low, huh.

 

[Mgdstar]

I took note when he stated that the Wrangler is too big of a vehicle to be pushed around with a four cylinder, especially with a 600 LB battery. Not going to be a good combination in the long run.

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